by J. L. Paul
“You’ll pay for this, you lying, cheating bitch,” he said in a low, dangerous tone. “You’ll pay.”
He ended the call, leaving me holding my phone. My breath came a little faster and I had to suck it in slowly to control it.
Finally, I set my phone on the nightstand and crawled into bed, pulling the sheets to my chin.
It wasn’t over at all.
Eighteen
When the sun kissed my cheeks the next morning, gently nudging me out of slumber, urging me to greet the day, I’d forgotten all about the phone call from the previous night. I jumped out of bed, threw on a pair of yoga pants under my long t-shirt, and padded downstairs for coffee.
On the kitchen table was a note scribbled in Cammy’s scrawl, reminding me that she was at her interview, thanking me for allowing her to use the car, and asking me to cross my fingers.
I smiled as I read it, hoping she did get the job. I wasn’t too concerned – Cammy had mentioned once that the interview was more of a formality – that the director had been impressed with her resume and wanted to hire her. Still, I was sure that Cammy was a nervous wreck.
As I sat on the deck nursing a cup of coffee, my cell phone rang, dragging my attention away from BK, who was trying to get to the geese in the middle of the pond, totally ignoring Stella, the old goose lounging on the bank ten feet away from him.
“Hello?” I asked, cringing. I hadn’t checked the screen again and didn’t want another confrontation with Brad.
“Hey, Bella,” Jenny said. “How are you? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, why?” I asked.
“Because your article came out in the paper here yesterday,” she explained. “Kevin said Brad was furious. George isn’t too happy, either. He called a meeting today with Brad and Henry. Apparently, he’s having his doubts about this partnership.”
“Hasn’t it already gone through?” I asked. I’d been at Jake’s for over six weeks now, and the merger had been going on for months.
“There’ve been a few snags,” she said. “And now this. It’s bad publicity and George wants nothing to do with it.”
“Wow,” I said.
“Yeah,” Jenny said. “To tell you the truth, I’m glad. I’d prefer to have nothing to do with him anymore. Kevin feels the same way. I think now, though, George’s eyes have been opened.”
“Has Brad said anything to Kevin – anything…threatening?”
“No,” she said. “Kevin doesn’t see him much.”
“That’s good,” I said.
“But, I guess this was supposed to be Brad’s largest merger,” Jenny explained. “One that he was trying to do without his father’s help. Now that it’s fallen apart, Kevin thinks he’s blaming you.”
“Of course he is,” I snorted. “Brad can’t take responsibility for his own actions.”
“It makes me worry for you,” she continued. “I know that Jake’s is safe – that he has the wall and alarms and security systems and everything, but what about if you go out?”
“I doubt if Brad is going to come here,” I said.
“I don’t know, Bella,” Jenny said. “We had dinner with George and Mildred last night and George said he’d never seen Brad so flustered. You just need to be careful, especially if you are out by yourself.”
I didn’t want to belittle her concerns, but I didn’t want to exacerbate them, either. Yes, I was a little nervous, but I didn’t think there was a need for any drastic measures.
“I’ll be careful, I promise,” I said. “Cammy’s here, remember? I won’t go out alone.”
“Okay,” Jenny said, but doubt lingered in her voice. “Thanks again for the girls’ night. I had a great time and it was nice to meet Cammy and hang out with Greta.”
“You’re welcome. We’ll do it again, sometime,” I promised.
The call ended after a few minutes so I ran inside to shower. I puttered around outside with BK until Cammy finally returned, jubilant that she’d received a job offer.
“Now I need to find an apartment,” she said, excitement shimmering in her eyes.
“You don’t need to hurry,” I told her.
“I know,” she said. “But after living in the dorms at Meridian Valley and then again at college, I’m sort of looking forward to living on my own.”
I couldn’t blame her but I didn’t want her to leave until after the guys returned. I wanted her to spend a little time with Nick.
“I was looking online last night,” Cammy said. “I found a few – even two that weren’t too far from here.”
“Well,” I said slowly, struggling to come up with a stalling tactic. “We can take a look at them if you want.”
“We can do it tomorrow,” she said with a wave of the hand. “Let’s just celebrate tonight.”
Our celebration consisted of an extravagant dinner downtown and a movie. By the time we got home, it was well past eleven and I was exhausted.
With the stone fence and the state-of-the-art security system, I usually slept with the balcony doors open to allow a fresh breeze to enter the room.
After changing into pajamas, I crawled into bed, BK snoring on the rug. Just as I’d snuggled into the pillows, inhaling the scent of Jake’s shampoo, BK bolted upright.
“What’s the matter?” I asked as I scooted to the edge of the bed to find the dog rigid, head low, tail between his legs. “BK, what’s wrong?”
A low growl escaped his lips, the sound scraping against my spine. Cautiously, I climbed out of bed and walked to the open doors, BK right behind me.
I crept out to the balcony, heart thumping, hands shaking, and listened. BK stood beside me, his body still tense.
The moon struggled to send its beams through the gauzy clouds in the sky. Although Jake had plenty of landscape lights around the deck and house, there wasn’t much out in the vast yard or the pond. I couldn’t make out any shapes or shadows, no noises, nothing. BK inched past me, lifting his snout in the air. I watched as his nose quivered, picking up a scent that he didn’t like. The hair on his neck and down the middle of his back stood straight.
“What is it?” I asked, summoning the courage to walk to the balcony rail. BK followed and hopped up, his front paws on the rail. I peered down just as a deep bark emitted from his throat. A moment later, a dark shadow scampered away from the house, over the deck, and toward the pond, driving BK into a frenzy.
“Are you kidding me?” I asked, lifting his paws off the rail and tugging his collar. “It was a raccoon or a possum or something and you totally freaked me out!”
BK continued to bark until I got him back inside and shut the doors. Even though I doubted if an animal would creep into my bedroom – especially with BK in the room – I was still a little shaken and didn’t want to leave them open.
Just as he settled on the rug and I climbed into bed, my cell phone rang. Jumping, I snatched the phone and answered it quickly, my heart going nuts.
“Hello?”
“How are you, Isabella? Ready to come home yet?”
“Leave me alone, Brad,” I said.
“You owe it to me,” he continued, as if I hadn’t spoken. “You left me after all I’ve done for you. You cost me one of the biggest deals of my life. You need to get back here, go through with the wedding, and help mend my tarnished reputation.”
“Not happening, now leave me alone.”
A tap at my door woke BK from his slumber. He ran to the door, whining, tail wagging. Phone pressed to my ear, I crossed the room to open it.
“Greta’s on the land line,” Cammy whispered.
“If you’re finished, I need to go,” I said, ending the call and tossing my phone on the bed. I took the cordless from Cammy. “Hey, Greta. Everything all right?”
“Yeah,” Greta said. “Are you okay? I tried to call your cell but you didn’t answer.”
“Oh, sorry,” I said. “I had another call.”
“So, he called you, too, huh?”
“What?” I asked,
head spinning. “Who?”
“Brad,” she said. “He called my cell phone, cussing at me, telling me to make you go back to him.”
“Oh, you’re kidding,” I groaned. “Damn it. Greta, I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” she said. “Don’t apologize for that sicko’s actions.”
“How did he get your number?” I asked as my cell phone rang on the bed. “Hang on, Greta.”
Handing the cordless to Cammy, I snatched my phone up, relieved to see Jake’s number on the screen.
“Hey,” I said.
“Did that bastard call you?” Jake demanded.
“What?”
“Stanich,” he said, his volume high enough to garner BK’s attention. “Did he call you?”
“Yes,” I said, “but…”
“He called my cell,” Jake continued. “And he called Nick, Ronnie, and Matt.”
“What?” I said. “But, how?”
“I don’t know,” Jake said. “He didn’t stay on the line long enough to explain. Just told each of us to send you home or suffer the consequences.”
My stomach turned as I sank to the bed, hands trembling. A thought suddenly popped into my head. “Oh, no.”
“Yeah,” Jake said.
“I think I know how he got the numbers,” I said. “Oh, how stupid!”
“Iz, what are you talking about?” Jake said, his voice finally lowering to a better level.
Swallowing, I released a breath. “That card that Nick gave me when I saw you guys after the concert. It was Greta’s business card and Nick wrote everyone’s cell numbers on the back. I hid that card in one of my dresser drawers. Brad must have gone through my stuff after I left.”
“Don’t worry about that now,” Jake said. “Stanich having the numbers isn’t a big deal. We’ve all had to change our numbers before and we can do it again. What we need to worry about is getting you out here as soon as possible.”
“Why?” I asked. “I mean, yeah, he called and spit out his usual stupidness, but I don’t think he’s going to come here. Even if he did, he can’t get through the gate.”
“I know,” Jake said. “But I’d feel a lot better if you were here, safe, at least until we can figure out how to get rid of this guy.”
I had to admit that I was quite shaken. I was beginning to think that Brad would do anything to terrorize me now that he’d lost face. And I missed Jake.
“I’ll book a flight and call you back with the details,” I said.
“Okay,” he said. “Don’t answer your cell anymore. If I call, I’ll use the landline.”
Agreeing, I ended the call to get to work on a flight. The earliest I could get wasn’t until the next morning. When I called Jake back with the details, he wasn’t happy but he grudgingly accepted that it was the best we could do.
After my travel arrangements were made, I called Greta back.
“So, can you take care of BK and Cammy for me?” I asked, after explaining what was going on and when I was leaving.
“Sure,” Greta said. “I’ll take Cammy to look at apartments tomorrow and she can stay with me until she finds something. And you know BK is always welcome here.”
Satisfied that I had a plan, I finally ended all calls and crawled back into bed.
“I’m staying in here with you tonight,” Cammy said, climbing into the huge bed. “It’ll be like a slumber party.”
Laughing, I turned out the light and tried to sleep. It wasn’t until an hour or two before dawn that I finally fell into a light slumber.
***
The next morning, we loaded our bags and the dog into Greta’s car and headed for the airport. Sitting in the back with BK, I gazed out the window, expecting Brad to pop out at any minute. I chastised myself, thinking that wasn’t Brad’s style, but I still couldn’t shake that eerie feeling that had plagued me since his phone call the previous night.
As we approached the expressway, my cell rang. I checked the screen but it wasn’t Brad. It was Jenny.
“Bella, I’m glad I got ahold of you,” she gasped. “You’ll never believe what Brad and Henry are pulling now.”
“What?” I asked, my voice weary. Exhaustion was creeping up my spine and I’d been a little light-headed since I’d gotten out of bed that morning.
“They’re pulling all funding to the Children’s Center,” she said, teary-eyed. “And, since the Stanich’s own the building, they’re evicting them. They’re supposed to be out by the first of next month.”
“Seriously? He’s going to take this out on the children?” I nearly screeched. Cammy turned in her seat while Greta eyed me in the rearview mirror. “How pathetic.”
“The Board released a statement saying that, unless they find a suitable building and procure funding, the Center will have to close.”
My mind whirred, desperate for ideas. “How about government grants or funding?”
“I don’t know,” Jenny said. “I’m just letting you know what’s happening.”
Sighing, I glanced out the window, helpless. “I know. Thanks, Jenny.”
“I’ll keep you in the loop,” she promised before ending the call.
Quickly, I explained to Cammy and Greta what was going on. Greta cursed Brad in a slightly amusing, colorful way. But Cammy turned once more to face me.
“Remember in high school how you organized that concert for the Education Foundation?” she asked. I nodded, not quite sure where she was headed. “Maybe you could do something like that again. I mean, it wouldn’t solve the building issue, but it might help with other things.”
“It’s an idea,” I said as I mulled it over. Maybe, just maybe, I could do something. I’d been keeping myself busy with the landscaping and such, but what I really needed was a project – something to stimulate my brain. I wasn’t used to being idle.
I was still thinking of things that I could do for the Center when we arrived at the airport. Cammy helped me with my luggage but I entered by myself, not wanting the girls to leave BK in the car alone just to walk me to my gate.
Once I was finally settled in my seat on the plane, I sat back, closing my eyes, to organize my thoughts and plot a way to approach Jake with my plan. I’d only been in the air thirty minutes when I dozed off, not waking until the captain announced that we were making our final approach.
My heart twitched, knowing that soon I’d be with Jake again. Excitement stirred in my gut as I left the plane, searching the crowd for a familiar face.
“Isabelle.”
Only one person called me Isabelle and I spotted him right away. Short, stocky, with sandy brown hair and hazel eyes, Doc Dietrich, tour manager for Controlled Environment, stood with his hands shoved into his front pockets.
“Hey,” I said, smiling. “Thanks for picking me up.”
“No problem,” he said, slipping my carryon off my shoulder. “Let’s grab your bags and get going. The boys are on a shoot right now or else I’m sure Jake would have been here.”
We moved through the crowds, elbowed our way to the luggage carousel, and emerged from the airport reasonably unscathed. Doc ushered me to a dark SUV with tinted windows before heaving my luggage into the back.
Maybe it was the bright, blinding sunlight or the nearly suffocating heat, I didn’t know, but my head went light, spinning slightly, as my stomach lurched. Pressing my fingers to my temple, I closed my eyes, flinching when Doc slammed the back door. By the time he climbed in beside me, the sick feeling was waning.
“You feeling all right, there, Isabelle?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said. “I’m pretty tired, that’s all.”
“Well, I can take you to the condo, if you’d like. I’ll just tell Jake when I run back to the video location.”
“No,” I said, forcing a smile. “I’m okay. Just take me to Jake.”
“No problem,” he said, starting the engine. “It’s a short drive.”
The air conditioning kicked on, making my head and stomach slightly bett
er. I straightened in my seat, peering out the window at the tall palm trees and the impossible LA traffic.
I’d traveled several places with my family over the years but we’d never made it to the west coast. As the beauty and diversity crept past my window, I wondered why.
“We’re shooting in this old warehouse,” Doc explained. “Finishing up the first video. It’s really cool, too. Rob Ross brought in some old cars that are bad ass.”
“Sounds like it,” I mumbled with a slight smile. What was it about cars that turned grown men into little boys?
Doc was right – it didn’t take long to get to the warehouse. My heart stirred, anxious to see Jake again, but I wasn’t prepared for the horde of people gathered behind the yellow caution tape placed several feet from the entrance.
“Fans,” Doc muttered as he lowered his window, waving a badge at a security guard. The guard nodded us through and Doc cursed as he maneuvered through the crowd. Once we were close, he killed the engine and then turned to me. “Let me come around to your side, okay? I’ll walk you in and then throw your luggage in the rental van the guys are using.”
“Thanks,” I said as he climbed out of the car and hurried to my door. Once it opened, he took me by the arm, ushering me, with the help of a security guard, toward the door. Several people recognized me and began shouting my name. It was almost cool, but my head was pounding and all I wanted was a cold drink of water and to see Jake again.
“This way,” Doc said, releasing my arm as soon as we made it inside. The cool, dark corridor helped to beat back my headache and I couldn’t wait to be in the same room as Jake.
Doc opened a door and I stepped inside a huge, open area filled with the old cars Doc was talking about. Camera crews milled about, adjusting cords and repositioning tripods, waiting for the action to start again.
I paused, my eyes scanning the room until I spotted Nick, Ronnie, and Matt, sitting on the hood of an old Ford, staring at three men engaged in a heated discussion: Jake, Rob Ross, and Rob’s partner, Chad.
“What’s going on?” I whispered to Doc.
He waved them off as he opened a cooler and snagged two water bottles. “It’s nothing. They argue all the time. Artistic differences, or some crap.”
